Work to remove three of Toronto’s bike lanes along its busiest streets can go ahead after a Superior Court judge declined a request for a temporary injunction.
Justice Stephen Firestone denied Cycle Toronto’s application that would have stalled the province’s plans to start removing the bike lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue until April 16.
“Although the injunction was not granted, the judge agreed our client’s case raises a serious issue and that the removal of bike lanes will result in harm to those who depend on the bike lanes will likely result in harm to those who depend on the bike lanes for safe, affordable and climate-friendly transportation,” Bronwyn Roe, lawyer with Ecojustice, said in a release.
“Rather than wasting Ontarians' time and money with a costly false solution to traffic congestion, the Ontario government should be investing in safe, reliable active transit that is better for people and the planet.”
Premier Doug Ford passed Bill 212 in November, called Reducing Gridlock, Saving Your Time Act, requiring municipalities to seek approval from the transportation ministry before building new bicycle lanes.
It also allows the province to get rid of the existing bike infrastructure on Bloor, Yonge and University. The premier complained that some of these bike lanes create gridlock, particularly along a stretch of Bloor Street West that is close to Ford’s home in Toronto’s west end.
In an assessment to the transportation ministry, obtained by CTV News Toronto, it is acknowledged that the “actual alleviation of congestion may be negligible or short-lived due to other confounding factors or induced demand.”
Cycle Toronto launched its legal challenge in December, arguing that the Target Bike Lane Removal Provision “unjustifiably” infringes on their charter rights and will potentially “imperil” cyclists' health by increasing their risk of personal injury or death.
The advocacy group argued “hundreds of thousands” of Torontonians will continue cycling even if the lanes are removed—something Firestone disagreed with in his decision, pointing to evidence revealing three to four per cent of all trips within the city are from cyclists with “an even smaller share” making regular use of the bike lanes along Bloor, Yonge and University.
“The evidence also suggests that if the lanes are removed, the volume of cyclists using these roads will decrease significantly such that the raw total of cyclist collisions will be largely unaffected,” Firestone wrote.
While Firestone acknowledged an increased risk to cyclists' health who continue to ride along the impacted roads, the judge says the province is “correct to point out that for the vast majority of these cyclists, doing so is a choice.”
“This is not a case where the applicants have no viable alternative means of transportation, and this decreases the effect of any inconvenience incurred by the applicants or the public interest they represent,” the decision reads.
Michael Longfield, Cycle Toronto’s executive director, told CTV News Toronto that decision to dismiss the injunction was “disappointing, but we’re still very optimistic about the Charter challenge itself,” which will be heard on April 16.
“Ultimately, this case is about a Charter challenge basically saying that removing these bike lanes (…) will just put people’s lives at risk, (it) won’t address traffic of congestion,” Longfield said.
“Something else that we’re cautiously optimistic on as well is that, we don’t think (the) removal of these bikeways will start anytime soon, even without the injunction. These are fairly complicated engineering projects.”
According to a draft schedule, from the ministry’s emails revealed in court earlier this week, the province may only start removing bike lanes on April 27, 2026.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Queen’s Park Bureau Chief Siobhan Morris
